With Tuesday’s game against Nashville, the Ducks’ Antoine Vermette has served eight games of his 10-game suspension. He’ll be eligible to return Sunday against Washington. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

ANAHEIM – The act itself was stunning and the perpetrator was even more so.

It didn’t take long for Ducks forward Antoine Vermette to feel remorse for his inexplicable choice to take his stick and slash linesman Shandor Alphonso after a faceoff that he felt was botched. Either directly to Alphonso or in a prior statement about the incident, Vermette has tried to convey that.

“The first opportunity I had to call him, I reached out to him to apologize and talk,” Vermette said. “And actually I talked to him for a long time in New York. He’s a nice guy. I got that feeling when I reached out over the phone and actually personally talked to him for a long time. He’s a good guy.”

That is the impression many have of the personable and approachable Vermette. He has battled for his share of the ice surface for 12 seasons but had never crossed the line of what’s acceptable and what is not. Only one major penalty was on his record.

It all changed, of course, on Valentine’s Day in Minnesota. Alphonso dropped the puck early in the third period as Vermette was coming up out of his crouched stance. And then he reacted with something that’s against the rules in any level of hockey.

“Of course you can’t do that,” Vermette said. “And I accept this responsibility. I shouldn’t do that. My intention probably looks a lot more awkward on the video, to get his attention even though it’s a bad idea to address it at that stage.

“Totally out of character.”

With Tuesday’s game against Nashville, Vermette has served eight games of his 10-game suspension. He’ll be eligible to return Sunday against Washington. But he and his camp did issue an appeal, arguing that Vermette’s stick work on Alphonso was a “tap” and not done out of malicious intent.

An agreement was believed to have been reached between NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and the players’ union for Vermette’s ban to be cut to five games but the NHL Officials Association vehemently balked and Bettman ultimately decided to side with the referees and uphold the suspension.

Following the appeal, Vermette and the NHLPA opted not to take their appeal to a neutral arbitrator. The forward was disappointed “to some extent” but is now eager to put it behind him.

“As a player I want to go back as soon as possible,” Vermette said. “Obviously that would have been nice if it were a little quicker. But that said, I accept the responsibility that goes with that. And that’s where we’re at.”

In the meantime, Vermette is trying to make the most of his time off. He’s happy to continue practicing with the Ducks and not be completely idle.

“It’s huge,” he said. “I can get some time with the skills coach, which is great. I think that I approached it as I’m trying to get an edge. Rarely it’s in the season where you can be healthy and have some time and energy to invest in the gym and do some stuff. Lifting weights or doing some extra work where usually with the grind of the season, you can’t really do.”

Boll and McLeod are at the top of the NHL in fighting majors and squared off in the first period. Kase was scratched for the first time in nine games and just the third time since being recalled from the minors in mid-November.

Eric Stephens has been covering the Ducks and the NHL for news outlets since 2005 and for the Orange County Register since 2009. Now happily spreading the hockey gospel throughout the Southern California News Group. Has covered three Stanley Cup Finals and (sadly) one NHL lockout. Once took up an invitation to a fan's tailgate barbecue at the College World Series. Has all sorts of genres on his iPod and tries his best in whatever he does most of the time. Only the grits at Waffle House come close to his. Eternal goal: Be better.

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